Page 53 of Shadowman
Because it will, if you let it. We’ve all seen it happen, more times than we cared to. Luthor’s past cellmates—whether I gave a shit about them or not—were all overcome by the mayhem and madness of being locked up forever in Alabaster fucking Pen. And now so has O’Malley.
Parker Freeman, Ren’s last and only cellmate, wasn’t swallowed up by it like the rest were. But still, he lost himself, his soul…Fuck it, hislife.
We know he’s dead. Denying it does nothing for anyone.
He’sgone, and when it happened, Luthor, Ren, and I made a pact. No matter what they do to us, no matter how hard they try, we’llneverlose ourselves within the walls of this goddamn crypt. Never lose sight of what’s important…Survival.
The Ivory can chain our bodies, but he’ll never possess our minds.
More memories try to slink in between my defenses, but I block them andfocuson what’s happening now, in this moment. The bland, colorless shuffle out of my cell for some mundane routine.
Will it stay this way? Or will this be another bout of mayhem…?
I guess we’ll find out.
Joy and Rook are herding us into the row, and I peek behind me to find Luthor coming my way. By himself, meaning Dash is still in solitary.
I shiver at the thought.
Dash is Luthor’s new cellmate, and they’ve been attached at the hip since his arrival—coincidentally the same day O’Malley disappeared.See what I mean? It’s either nonstop action, or mind-numbing tedium.
Dash winds up in solitary often. The kid’s been in the hole more times in histwo monthshere than most of us have in years.One could rationalize that it’s because he kicked Velle in the balls within twenty-four hours of his arrival, and he’s been paying the price ever since. But honestly, I’m not sure that’s the real reason.
It makes more sense that he’s an undercover troublemaker… With a tendency to attract unwanted attention.
I’m biting down on the inside of my cheek as Luthor sidles up to me.
“Hey,” he grumbles, sounding tired.Makes sense.
Ren’s been in solitary too, after he and Dash apparently got into some fight with Gage and his homeboys in the showers. I haven’t seen Dash since the night the power went out…
Storms have been ravaging the East Coast for weeks, causing frequent power outages. Luthor even had to go down to the East Wing at one point and help them with the servers. That was when he verified that O’Malleywasalive, although knowing what goes on down there, I’d say simply beingaliveisn’t exactly a comfort.
Ren’s only been gone a couple of days, but Luthor is clearly worried. He tries to act like he doesn’t care, but his demeanor betrays him. You can see it all over his face, in his slumped shoulders and his movements heavy with melancholy.
Luthor is an empath. He can’t help it. He carries the burden of what’s happening to his friends as if it’s happening to him. And when your friends are RenandDash, keeping up with that concern is like a full-time job.
I can’t say I don’t understand. I’ve certainly felt off since my cellmate was taken.Fortunately, there’s no shortage of other crap for me to obsess over.
Grunting a response to Luthor’s greeting, I’m eyeing him in my peripheral. When we reach the end of the row and find Ren’s cell still empty, Ifeelhim deflate a little more at my side.
“Looks like it’s just the two of us,” I breathe, then stiffen.
I’m sincerely hoping things aren’t going to be awkward after what happened the other night in the hallway…
Not that we did anythingtoeach other.But things were definitely happening in our shared bubble.
Luthor shows me a small, comforting smile. “You know what that means…”
I cock a brow.
“Bro date.”
I can’t help the puff of laughter that leaves my lips.Of courseI’m overthinking it. After all, Luthor and I have a different kind of friendship. We’refam, above all else. Something as insignificant as a voyeuristic orgasm couldn’t shake our foundation.
Just a couple of bros jerking off watching their other bro swallow some cum. What’s the big deal?
In the caf, we get settled at our usual table with our usual trays of slop, digging in without words. It’s always quieter when Ren’s not around. I like to think I prefer it this way, but I can’t deny that something is missing…
